Curtis Brochu, born in Calgary, has spent a long and rewarding career in the provision of Emergency Services. Graduating as a paramedic in 1983 and working in a variety of different services as a paramedic, paramedic/firefighter, and dispatcher. In 1989 he began a two year teaching career in pre-hospital care at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, followed by permanent employment with The City of Calgary Emergency Medical Services in ever increasing levels of responsibility. After working as Superintendent responsible for the day to day delivery of ambulance services to the citizens of Calgary he moved into Planning and Preparedness becoming the Project Manager for the City of Calgary's Corporate Pandemic Plan. This project developed an integrated plan for all city departments, across the corporation. In September 2006 he took on a new position and challenge as the Manager of Public Safety Communications for The City of Calgary. It is a developing centre focusing on integrated call taking and evaluation services for 9-1-1 answer, call evaluation and dispatch services for the Calgary Police Service, Fire Departments, and Emergency Medical Services in the greater Calgary metropolitan area.
Gavin commenced his policing career in 1980 with the Halton Regional Police Service and one of his first assignments was to work within the Communications Bureau. Elevated to the rank of Constable in 1981 within the uniform ranks his assignments included General Patrol, Traffic Enforcement, Traffic Reconstruction, Marine Duties and Criminal Investigation. In 1998, Gavin was promoted to the rank of Sergeant and from 2000-2002 was seconded to the Ontario Provincial Government within the Policing Standards Branch responsible for the development and production of a number Provincial Adequacy Standards and managing the Provincial TASER Field Testing, Provincial Use of Force and Suspect Apprehension Pursuits Projects. Promoted to the rank of Staff Sergeant in 2004 and in 2007 Gavin was transferred to the Communications Bureau as its Manager.
Gavin has a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice Administration from Rocheville University, a Certificate in Police Management from Sheridan College, is certified in PSAP Disaster Planning and is trained in Incident Command.
He is married to his wife Karen and has one grown and two teenage children. In his spare time Gavin owns/operates his own computer repair business.
Theresa started her career in 1975 with Peel Regional Police as a records clerk. In 1976 she was selected as one of a group of the first civilian dispatchers for Peel Regional Police. In 1980, left Peel Regional Police and joined Durham Regional Police as a dispatcher. In 1989 was awarded the position of Supervisor in Communications. In 1994, was selected to be the first civilian Manager of Durham Regional Police Communications Centre and 9-1-1 Manager. In 2004, due to a reconfiguration of Senior Management, took on the title and position of Communications/9-1-1 Technical Services Manager. She has completed a Masters Certificate in Regional Management from U.O.I.T. graduating in 2005 and has been a certified A.P.C.O. trainer since 2004. In addition to her other duties, is the Ontario Associate Editor for the Canada APCO "Wavelength" magazine. She is currently in her 33rd year of policing. Theresa has long been an advocate for Communicators and communications training and has been an active member of APCO since 1994.
Theresa has been married to husband Ted for 28 years, has three children and two grandchildren.
Sandy's Civilian Member career with the RCMP started in 1976. Since that time she has been stationed in ten different RCMP Operational Communication Centres throughout 'E' Division, British Columbia. Although all centres have been operational in nature two had a varied, focused applications, those being Vancouver International Airport and '43' Vancouver, Division Headquarters.
Her current position is as Officer in Charge of North District OCC in Prince George. This is the second largest provincial centre in British Columbia with the largest geographical coverage area - 72% of the province! Aside from being a communications operator, a shift supervisor, and an office manager, Sandy has been involved in communication operator training, disaster planning, managerial reviews and strategic planning. She is a single course away from completion of a Project Management Diploma. Aside from her work with the RCMP, her previous work history includes nursing, teaching and real estate.
Sandy's limited leisure time is centered around art and RVing. She and her husband Glenn have two grown children (step) and two grandchildren living in Victoria and Edson, Alberta.
Ryan Lawson has been an Operations Manager at E-Comm (the 9-1-1 and Emergency
Communications Center for Southwest BC) in Vancouver, BC since August of 2008. Ryan's
background in Emergency Communications began as a 9-1-1 and Emergency Police call-taker in
mid 2003. He has been an acting trainer, mentor to new call-takers, as well as provided
leadership and training for E-Comm's PoliceCAD transition. Ryan accepted a management role as a Team Manager in April of 2006. Since taking on a management role, Ryan has helped lead the charge for integration of call-center metrics, measures, and methodology into the emergency and 9-1-1 environment. In addition, Ryan helped to lead the team that managed the transition of E-Comm Fire Dispatch to the Intergraph CAD and Locution Firehall Alerting System. In his most recent role Ryan has taken on responsibility and oversight of E-Comm's Training, Quality Assurance, Voice Records, Professional Standards, and Fire Dispatch Operation. Prior to joining E-Comm, Ryan held leadership positions in marketing with AT&T Canada, StarGarden Software, and as an Officer in the Canadian Armed Forces. When not at E-Comm, Ryan enjoys golf and rollerblading, is an avid movie fan (and collector!) and is a lifelong student of military history. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in History from the University of British Columbia as well as certifications in Internet Marketing and Leadership.
Bart Rowland started his EMS/Fire career in 1984 and has been with The City of Red Deer since 1988 where he currently holds the position of Deputy Fire Chief - 9-1-1 Emergency Communications. He is a relative newcomer to the world of 9-1-1 and Emergency Agency dispatching as his previous role was that of a Paramedic/Firefighter for The City of Red Deer. He currently sits on the Executive Board of the Alberta E9-1-1 Advisory Association and is a recent graduate of the Fitch & Associates/NAED Communication Centre Manager course.
Bart is married to Deb and they have 2 children, Shawn (9) and Haley(6). He enjoys camping, golfing and spending time with his family when not working.
Maureen has worked in the Public Safety field for over twenty years. Initially an EMT, she entered the world of communications when she joined the Regina Police Service. Her roles there included dispatcher, trainer, supervisor, and administrative coordinator. In June 2006, she took on the position of Manager of 911 for Saskatchewan. Recently promoted to Deputy Fire Commissioner for the Province of Saskatchewan, Maureen is currently participating in a province-wide Public Safety Review Committee that will investigate how to best respond to both large and small-scale events. Representing Saskatchewan on committees such as the Emergency Services Working Group and the Abuse of 911 in Canada provides Maureen a national perspective on public safety communication issues. Operationally, Maureen is overseeing the operations of the Provincial PSAP located in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. This center answers 911 calls for the majority of the Province and dispatches over 185 fire departments. Maureen holds certificates in Adult Education, Administration, Project Management, and is particularly proud of her Emergency Number Professional (ENP) certification.
